The Consequences of Impossibility
by arethusa85
Summary: The TARDIS alerts Rose to something the Doctor swore was impossible. Choices We Made series set after Fear Her. Rose / Tenth Doctor


**Character/Pairing:** Ten/Rose  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Disclaimer:** The BBC owns all, I am merely borrowing.  
**Spoilers:** Through_ Doomsday_.  
**Author's Notes:** A very _very_ long time ago, togetheragain21 requested a story about Rose realizing she was pregnant, and here it is! This story begins a little while after _Fear Her_.

* * *

"I think the TARDIS stole my pink hoodie," Rose announced as she strode into the console room.

The Doctor's head popped up from beneath one of the floor grates. "Why would she do that?"

"I dunno. But I searched everywhere. Last time I saw it was when we..." her voice trailed off as she gestured at the jumpseat. "Have you seen it?"

Staring at the jumpseat, the Doctor failed to reply.

"You're thinking 'bout the sex, aren't you?"

The Doctor blinked and shook his head to clear it. "What?"

Rose giggled. "You're such a bloke sometimes!"

"No, I just..." he sputtered. "I wasn't..."

"Deny it all you want, but s'true!" She grinned, tongue peeking between her teeth. "Don't remember tossing it anywhere, do you? Heat of the moment?"

Blushing, he ducked his head back beneath the floor. "Not that I can recall..."

"Right. I'll go check our room again. Must've missed it."

The Doctor raised his head just enough to watch Rose until she disappeared down the corridor. "I know you're up to something. With Rose. And I don't approve," he stated, glaring at the time rotor. "If it's so important, why won't you tell me?" He pulled himself up out of the access hatch and secured the grating back in place. "Not like you to keep so many secrets. What if I lubricate your mylometric pistons, eh? Clean some of the gears in the coordinate intersperser? They're about due, I should think. Oh! How about fixing that congruent encounter button that's been sticking? I _know_ you'd love that."

The ship chimed indignantly and the Doctor soothingly brushed a hand along one of the coral struts.

"Is it the storm? We can't avoid it forever. It'll find us when we least expect it. You know that." He took a deep breath and released it slowly. When he spoke again, his voice was rough. "I promise I'll keep her safe. Whatever I've got to do, I'll keep her safe."

* * *

Rose rarely visited her old room. Soon after their dalliance in the study, the TARDIS had moved most of Rose's things to a new wardrobe in the Doctor's room. But since it was the only plausible place she hadn't checked, she decided to take a peek. Everything was almost as she'd left it. The TARDIS had seen fit to straighten the rumpled sheets on the bed and the room looked vacant without the usual clutter.

She spotted something pink at the edge of her vision and marched triumphantly into the en suite. "Aha! How'd you get in here? I don't remember..." She grabbed the hoodie from where it was draped along the edge of the sink and something fell out, skittering across the floor. Frowning, she leaned over to pick up the small box.

The packaging was slightly holographic in a way not achievable in the twenty-first century, but what it contained was perfectly recognizable.

"Oh, no," Rose breathed, heart rate suddenly escalating. "But I can't be. He said..." She groaned. "He said, _impossible_. He's wrong isn't he?"

There was no reply from the ship but she'd supplied a test and that was answer enough.

As Rose had once told Mickey, traveling through time and space left one feeling timeless. It was difficult enough to keep track of days, never mind weeks and months. Desperately, Rose tried to remember how long it had been since her last monthly. Too long. Even with the irregularities caused by frequent time travel, it had been too long.

Swallowing hard, she turned the package over, fingers shaking as she tore at the cardboard. The plastic stick tumbled into her hands. As an afterthought she shut the door. No need to have the Doctor barging in when the shock of this possibility might just kill him. If it was true, she'd have to find a way to break it to him gently. He'd only recently admitted to having been a father once. Accidently, of course, like every other revelation about his past. She hadn't yet gathered enough courage to press him for details.

Waiting for the results, she nervously paced the length of the small room, her thoughts becoming more and more unsettling. She'd never even considered this possibility, completely trusting the Doctor that they were incompatible. She wasn't even sure she wanted children, especially considering the danger they encountered on a daily basis. She couldn't imagine raising a child in that environment. And the Doctor; he'd had a family once. Then he'd lost everything. _Everyone_. Despite his attachment to her, Rose wasn't sure he wanted to start building a family all over again. No matter what either of them thought, they might have to face the situation very soon. She scrunched her eyes shut, reaching blindly for the test and taking a deep fortifying breath before she looked down.

Positive.

There was no mistaking the blue star on the end of the plastic wand. Pregnant. Definitely pregnant. Pregnant with the Doctor's child. Alien baby on the way.

Her legs threatened to collapse from the shock and she unsteadily seated herself on the edge of the tub. She didn't know if she was happy or terrified. She felt numb. The hum of the ship changed slightly and it sounded like it could be reassurance. The TARDIS had known. And if the TARDIS knew...

Rose frowned, looking up at the ceiling as she addressed the ship. "How come the Doctor doesn't know? I mean, he's in m'head often enough now and..." She gasped. "You're keepin' it from him, aren't you? Why? Does he not want...?" She froze as the door handle turned.

"Rose? Are you in there?"

"Yeah," she managed, tightly clutching the plastic strip in her hands.

The door rattled. "You all right? The door's locked."

She heard the tell-tale buzz of the sonic screwdriver and scrambled to find somewhere to hide the test.

Even muffled by the door, she could hear his consternation as he muttered, "The TARDIS has locked it."

"M'fine! I'll be right out," she shouted, quickly tossing the pregnancy test in a drawer and slamming it shut. Taking a deep breath, she smiled, hoping it looked innocent, and opened the door.

The Doctor was hovering just outside and as soon as the door opened he pushed past her, making no effort to hide his focused perusal of the room. When nothing appeared amiss, he turned back to her. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"Yep. Positive." Rose grinned even wider and the Doctor's eyes narrowed. She needed to distract him and fast. "Um, I was thinking...s'been awhile since we visited my mum."

He took a step backwards, almost tripping over the edge of the tub. "Awhile? _Awhile?!_ It's been...well...two months. But that's hardly long at all! Considering." Seeing her pleading look, he sighed and ruffled his hair. "Oh, all right."

"Great!" Rose gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, before looping her arm through his and dragging him toward the corridor. "That means I can finally give her that present."

* * *

Numb didn't even begin to describe how Rose Tyler felt, sitting alone in a hotel lobby that looked like it had been plucked directly from an IKEA catalog. She'd cried silently for hours, her blurry vision focused on the beach beyond the windows. She couldn't accept that this was the end. That she was trapped without _him_. Forever.

"Oh, sweetheart. Here. Have another cuppa." Jackie placed a styrofoam cup on the end table, but her daughter remained focused on the view out the window. "I know how awful everythin' seems, Rose, but he really did what's best for you. An' he wouldn't want you to spend your life so unhappy."

"But...I've lost 'im, Mum. For good this time. An..." She swallowed hard, gathering every last bit of courage that still remained after her brave declaration on the beach. "I'm pregnant."

"Oh," Jackie breathed, collapsing into the armchair across from her daughter.

"An' I didn't know what I was gonna do before...before...an' now..." Rose squeezed her eyes shut, desperately trying to keep the seemingly endless tears at bay.

Jackie reached for her daughter's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Does he know?"

Rose shook her head. "I couldn't tell 'im, Mum. I just...couldn't."

"If you had, might not 'ave been so impossible for him," Jackie observed.

"That's _why_ I couldn't tell 'im. He'd have risked..." Rose shuddered at the thought. "I couldn't let 'im. No matter what."

"But how can it even be his? S'been four months an' you can't be _that_ pregnant. You're not even showin'."

"Only a little," Rose murmured, splaying a hand across her abdomen. "Alien, remember?"

Jackie paled. "Oh my god. Anythin' else gonna be different?"

"I dunno."

"Well, m'sure we can cope with whatever happens," Jackie stated resolutely. "An' the Doctor may have said it's impossible, but you know what, sweetheart? He _always_ says that." Spotting her daughter's tremulous smile, she exclaimed, "There's a smile! Now, drink your tea. Can't have you wastin' away before he returns, can we?"


End file.
